Strictly Come Dancing star Stefan Dennis won’t perform with pro-partner Dianne Buswell this Saturday after falling ill.
The official BBC Strictly Instagram account shared the news, writing: ‘Due to illness over the past few days, Stefan Dennis has been advised by doctors to rest and, as a result, he will not dance this weekend.
The news comes just 24 hours before the couples were set to hit the dance floor for Movie Week, with the first-ever guest judge Cynthia Erivo, coming on board to help mentor dancers.
Stefan and Dianne were set to perform Waltz to It Is You (I Have Loved) from Shrek.
It was also clarified that the Neighbours star, 66, will, hopefully, return to the dance floor.
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As the caption continued: ‘In line with the rules of Strictly, Stefan and Dianne will receive a bye through to next week when they will hopefully be able to dance again.’
The account also wished the actor a ‘speedy recovery’.
Well-wishes for the celebrity contestant have flooded including from Dianne herself, who wrote: ‘Sending alll my Aussie love Steffo. I know how much you wanted to dance.’
Claudia Winkleman shared three heart emojis while Motsi Mabuse added: ‘Get well soon’.
‘Speedy recovery Stefan!’ former Strictly finalist Tasha Ghouri wrote.
‘Get well soon stefan. I gonna miss see you dance. Hope to see you again next week,’ wendyvise91 shared.
The line-up for this season has seen plenty of change. Prior to the show starting, Game of Thrones star Kristian Nairn quit the show due to ‘medical reasons’ and was replaced by Emmerdale’s Lewis Cope.
Then, between the pre-recorded launch and the first live show, Dani Dyer hurt her ankle, forcing her to also pull out. Fellow Love Island star Amber Davies stepped in to partner with pro Nikita Kuzmin.
Stefan and Dianne’s partnership has caused plenty of buzz after the Australian dancer announced she was expecting a child with former Strictly partner Joe Sugg.
This makes her the first contestant to perform on the show while pregnant.
The star – who won Strictly last year with comedian Chris McCausland – has had to hit back against comments about her decision to go ahead with the show.
A couple of weeks ago she took to Instagram to hit back at a vile message from a troll, which read: ‘I don’t want to see her dance being pregnant. It’s already feeling uncomfortable and she’s only starting to show. It’s really not appropriate’.
At the time she said: ‘ ‘I can’t believe in 2025 things like this are still being said’.
Meanwhile, judge Motsi Mabuse faced backlash from fans after she advised the duo to rehearse more.
Strictly Come Dancing will air on Saturday at 6:05pm on BBC One
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